October Looms

As October fast approaches there are two things that come to mind.

The first being hunting season. I don’t get to put in nearly as much time in the field as I’d like. Essentially I have only Saturdays to experience the thrill of the hunt. Would I like to have more time? Absolutely. Maybe one day the fates will allow it, until then I’ll have to live for Saturday. Additional hunting days are sparse if they exist at all. It’s a hard thing to deal with, but something I wouldn’t expect everyone to understand. But when one is given the option to either sit in a cubicle all day, or spend his day in the woods, the choice for me is easy; unfortunately, it’s the option that often escapes me. The trailer in the title of this blog uses the phrase “the would be great outdoorsman,” for a reason. What can I say, when you’ve been out in the deer woods, or on the trout stream before the sun rises, and witness Mother Nature waking up on her own terms, it’s a hard thing to shake, and it can even drive you crazy.

So where would you rather be?



Where I spend 70% of my waking life. Yes, I did the math.

-OR-

Where my head is most of the time...

A big part of hunting season is what you do every other day of the year. The preparation can be just as fun as the hunt itself. We scout, all year round. We hike the game lands in search of signs and clues. Trail cameras are a help, it’s always nice to know what lurks in the woods when you can't be there.

Two young bucks in velvet caught on my trail camera..

You also practice shooting. I take part in a winter shooting league that helps keep me stay sharp. E-Rock and I always enjoy a nice crisp morning of shooting to refine our craft. We had the opportunity to do so this past Saturday. Eric broke out the old recurve and did his best Robin Hood impersonation. I don’t care what you see on TV, those things are damn hard to key in with and to shoot consistently well, but sticking a deer with one will certainly make the highlight reel in Eric’s life.

E-rock firing off a shot, how cool is it that we got the flying arrow in the pic?!?!

I stick with the Matthews compound bow, not that I don’t have an affinity for more traditional weaponry, but it’s just so damn sexy. An interesting thing about archery is the amount of things that need to go right for it to go well. Your stance, your breathing, your draw back technique, your release technique, the light, the wind, the angle of the shot, the trajectory of the arrow….are you getting the point? Consistency is key. When sitting in a tree stand and a deer comes walking into you, buck fever, is a very real thing. The nervousness, the adrenaline, lack of focus, over all fever like symptoms…these things are not exactly conducive to making a good shot. The more instinctive your shooting becomes, the more at ease your mind will be, the straighter your arrow flies. Instinct comes from practice.



Would I ever take a shot this far off? Who knows, just nice to know I could.



It's all about technique people!

OK, so my long range shootin' has me 3/5 happy....need more practice for sure!

I’m sure I’ll be sharing more on the progression of hunting season as it actually happens, another thing comes along with October….the imbibing of fine Oktoberfest Brews! As many of you may well know, this would be great outdoorsman is also a connoisseur of fine spirits; whiskies, wines, porters, ales and such.

The nectar of the Gods! Fuel for the outdoorsman!

The roots of Oktoberfest go back to 1810. In October of that year Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese in Munich. All citizens were invited to the festivities. The following year another festival was held on the anniversary, more or less an agricultural festival and horse racing event, it was also a big party, and the party proceeded to get bigger over the last 200 years. Beers served at Oktoberfest must be brewed locally. The harvest time of year has brought a certain expectation of beers released in October. One of the best and one of my favorites is Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest. This Bavarian brewers operation is said to originate in the year 1410. Legend has it Prince Ludwig himself commissioned Joseph Pschorr, to be one of the few brew masters to develop a special beer for his wedding celebration. This brewery actually had a stake in the origins of one of the biggest celebrations in the world; to say they know what they’re doing is a huge understatement! I strongly recommend you all try some of this great fest bier this year, if you can’t find it, you might find some samplings of its sister company, Paulaner (sound more familiar?) or another ancient Bavarian specialty, Weihenstephaner Fest bier.

You may not all feel the kinship to a good brew like I do. You may not be able to tell the difference between an IPA and a pilsner, a lager and a wheat beer…but if you can’t sense the superiority of a Hacker-Pschorr to a Miller Lite, than my friends, I can’t help you!

In the opinion of this blogger, nothing beats an autumn morning of hunting followed by a cold Oktoberfest beer with a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup. But hey, that’s just my opinion.